Exploring the Value of Manual Drilling to Academic Research and Training
Tuesday, May 6, 2014: 3:00 p.m.
Confluence B (Westin Denver Downtown)
Michael F. MacCarthy
,
Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL
John A. Cherry, Ph.D.
,
School of Engineering, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
Kenneth A. Trout, Ph.D.
,
Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL
Monica Resto
,
Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL
Beth L. Parker, Ph.D.
,
School of Engineering, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
James R. Mihelcic, Ph.D.
,
Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL
Manual drilling techniques are increasingly being promoted as a cost-effective way of providing water for drinking and irrigation purposes in developing communities throughout the world. The relatively low cost of manually drilled wells, compared to machine-drilled wells or hand-dug wells, as well as the low cost and relative portability of their equipment, make them an attractive water supply option when hydrogeological conditions are favorable. Manual drilling techniques include the basic categories of hand auguring, percussion, sludging, and jetting. Hybrid techniques consisting of use of more than one of these techniques, alternately or simultaneously, often allow for improved drilling efficiency and increased drilling depth.
This research considers how manual drilling techniques can be of value in academic research and training environments, and consists of an assessment of percussion-jetting-rotation manual drilling, a low-cost hybrid technique developed in Bolivia. The equipment set-up is assessed for relevance in academic field research, where collection of hydrogeologic data is often limited by the expense of conventional machine drilling. The study also considers how manual drilling can be used to teach essential aspects of drilling concepts and groundwater science from a field perspective.
Ten monitoring wells were installed at the University of South Florida GeoPark using the manual percussion-jetting-rotation drilling technique, up to a maximum depth of 9 meters, through sand, clay, and thin layers of limestone. Drilling, well installation, and well development experiences were recorded. Geology was observed and logged during drilling. For training purposes, groundwater flow was determined between three wells. Hydraulic head and hydraulic conductivity were measured in each well. Well drilling techniques, basic groundwater hydrology, and well installation procedures were taught to engineering students. An additional, deeper well was being manually drilled in Fall 2013, to further test feasible drilling depths in an academic setting.
Michael F. MacCarthy, Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL
Michael MacCarthy is a specialist in water supplies for developing communities, with more than 12 years of experience in international development. His doctoral dissertation explores the sustainability of low-cost household groundwater supply technologies for developing communities, and builds upon his eight years of experience living and working in sub-Saharan Africa. His research and teaching interests include: low-cost environmental health technologies (manual water well drilling techniques, sustainable handpumps, latrines, cookstoves, etc.); self-supply in water; technology introduction and transfer; social marketing for developing communities; and international development in engineering education.
John A. Cherry, Ph.D., School of Engineering, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
John Cherry is the Director of the University Consortium for Field-Focused Groundwater Contamination Research, Associate Director of G360 Centre for Applied Groundwater G360–The Centre for Groundwater Research, and Adjunct Professor in the School of Engineering at the University of Guelph. He is a Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the University of Waterloo. Cherry co-authored the textbook Groundwater with R.A. Freeze (1979) and co-edited and co-authored several chapters in the book Dense Chlorinated Solvents and Other DNAPLs in Groundwater.
Kenneth A. Trout, Ph.D., Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL
Kenneth Trout is an Associate in Research in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of South Florida in Tampa. His primary interest is in groundwater modeling and the interaction of surface water and groundwater. He also teaches introductory engineering classes and a graduate geology course in groundwater modeling.
Monica Resto, Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL
Monica Resto is a student in Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of South Florida.
Beth L. Parker, Ph.D., School of Engineering, University of Guelph, Guelph, ON, Canada
Beth Parker is a Professor at the School of Engineering and Director of the G360 Centre for Applied Groundwater Research at the University of Guelph. She has more than 30 years of experience investigating subsurface contamination at numerous sites around the world using high resolution data sets for site conceptual model development and testing. Her current research activities emphasize developing improved field and laboratory methods for characterizations and monitoring of industrial contaminants in sedimentary rocks, clayey deposits, and sandy aquifers, and focus on the effects of diffusion in low permeability zones, plume attenuation, and hydrogeologic controls on remediation. Parker is currently involved in research and technology demonstration projects at Superfund and RCRA facilities in the United States and similar sites in Canada, Europe, and Brazil.
James R. Mihelcic, Ph.D., Civil & Environmental Engineering, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL
James Mihelcic is a Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of South Florida. He directs USF’s Peace Corps Master’s International Program in Civil & Environmental Engineering. Mihelcic is a member of the EPA Chartered Science Advisory Board, and a Board Trustee of the American Academy of Environmental Engineers & Scientists. He is lead author of the Field Guide in Environmental Engineering for Development Workers: Water, Sanitation, Indoor Air and Environmental Engineering: Fundamentals, Sustainability, Design.
